Peridot on Earth
by irlruby
Summary: Here, we view life on Earth for the Crystal Gems after they have been able to successfully destroy the Cluster. This is all told from Peridot's point of view.
1. Chapter 1

There have been exactly two rotations of the Earth since we have terminated the Cluster. This would mark the sixty-second day since my…capture.

I would've thought that ridding the Earth of the Cluster would feel more…relaxing. We no longer have to worry about the great harm it could've caused us. But everyone appears to be acting the exact opposite of how I thought they would. The Gems appear more distraught than usual. They're also acting very tense. I've tried to think back to the past couple of days to try and remember if I said something that could've offended them…but nothing comes to mind.

We have made conversation since our success, but it is very limited. We talk about cleaning out the Barn, and making preparations to going back to the Crystal Temple. I've seen Pearl and Amethyst talk amongst themselves. I even see them laugh every now and then. I always think to myself, "Could they be laughing at me?"

The only one who has actually made any effort to try and lighten the mood was Steven. He is constantly trying to cheer up the Gems, and is always telling them how proud he is of them. I witnessed him and Pearl talking. I couldn't quite hear what they were saying, but something Steven said had caused Pearl great emotional distress, which led her to start crying. I was considering going over to her to try and offer my moral support, but then I thought, "What if I'm the reason that she's upset?"

And then there's Garnet. She doesn't even make any effort to talk to anyone. She has immersed herself in endless amounts of cleaning. She has been successful in avoiding any type confrontation with us. Steven attempted to talk to her, but she appeared unaware of the fact that he was talking to her, as she never responded to him.

I desperately want to know what's wrong with them. They are such strange beings. They should be rejoicing over this victory, but instead, they're sulking! It's quite baffling, considering the fact that they seemed so excited to build the drill.

I went over to the lake to gather some tools, when Steven walked over to me. "Hey, Peridot!" he said. I acknowledged his presence with a grunt. "Well…um, when you go back to put your tools away, Garnet just said she wanted to gather us all for a mini-meeting. I'm pretty sure it has to do about leaving the barn. Man, am I going to miss this place! But I have kind of missed being back home at the Temple…I haven't seen any of the Beach City Residents in over two months!" He paused for a second. He opened his mouth, as if he was about to start talking again, but then he closed his mouth. "I'll catch up with you." And then he ran off.


	2. Chapter 2

After I finished cleaning out the area near the lake, I had followed Steven's instructions, and met up with the others. I found them all standing in a circle outside of the storage shed. When they saw that I had arrived, they had widened their circle so that I could fit into the conversation. Garnet then began to speak:

"Okay, team. I think that we're all tired of our stay here. It has been two straight months of nothing but hard work, dedication, and sacrifice. But, I can say, with both a heavy heart _and_ a sense of relief, we have won. I think it would be safe for us to leave here at around…maybe 5:00 tonight. This gives us an hour to clean up, and to gather our belongings. In an hour, we leave to head back to the Temple. That is all I need to say. You can go now." She finished, and everyone parted ways.

Pearl and Steven walked over to the lake so that they could look at the view. I could see them talking. Amethyst had walked off in the opposite direction, and she started to play with a stick. _How odd_ , I thought to myself. Garnet had walked back into the shed. She was taking items out of the car, and organizing them onto the shelves. I wanted to talk to her, to make sure that we were on good terms with each other. She was about to place a few more cans on a shelf, when she had accidentally knocked something over, and it rolled underneath the car. She bent down to try and reaches it. I could see her struggling to get it. The expression on her face looked pained. She kept trying to reach for the can. When she couldn't reach it, she just let herself drop to the floor. She picked herself up, and leaned against the tattered vehicle. She buried her face in her arms, and she began to cry. _Why is she crying? Is she crying because she couldn't reach the can? She has the ability to stretch out her limbs in a way so that it was possible for her to perform this task with ease! Should I remind her of that? Ugh, come on Peridot, focus! You need to find a way to make yourself appear useful to her!_ An idea suddenly popped into my mind. I looked at my hands, and then at Garnet. She didn't know I was standing in the room with her. I started to focus. Before I knew it, my right arm had started to stretch to a much longer length. I was able to stretch it underneath the vehicle. I reached for the can, and grabbed it. I pulled it out, and walked over to Garnet, who was still crying. I returned my arms back to its normal size. I placed the can next to her. She sensed my presence, and looked up at me. I stood there, at a loss for words. "Do you…need some assistance?" I asked.

She sat there, staring at me. She reached underneath her visors to wipe her teary eyes. "Yeah…sure. If you could just wash the outside of Greg's car, that would be a huge help." She handed me some type of rag. She also handed me a bucket. "Just go down to the lake and fill this up with water. From there you can just come back and…and wash the car." She began to pick things up and place them on the shelf. As I was walking out, I looked back at her. "She'll be alright," I whispered to myself.

As I walked over to the lake, I was stopped by Pearl and Steven. "Hello, Peridot!" Pearl greeted me. "Um…hello," I responded. I walked down to the lake, and placed the bucket under the water. I jumped when my hand had accidentally touched the water. It was such a cold and unfamiliar feeling. I accidentally dropped the bucket into the water. It started to float away. I tried to go into the water to reach for it, but I just couldn't get used to the feel of the water. "Ah! Uh-uh…somebody! Help!" I started to jump up and down. Pearl and Steven ran over to me. "What is it?" Steven asked, his tone of voice sounding concerned. "The bucket…it's floating away! And I can't reach it! Someone needs to get it, before it's too late! Someone has to-" I was interrupted when Pearl and Steven started to laugh. "Oh, Peridot. It's only water. There's nothing to be afraid of!" Pearl said. I felt myself beginning to blush. "Oh..well…I'm sorry," I said. Pearl laughed, then said, "Don't worry about it!" She then walked into the water. She bent over, and picked up the bucket. As she was walking back, she tripped over something that was in the water. She fell under the water. When she came up, I was in utter awe of what she was holding: She was holding a part of my limb enhancers! To be specific, she was holding the left leg and foot. "Oh my stars!" I screamed! "My limb enhancers! This must mean that the rest of them are in the area!" I leaped directly into the water, completely forgetting my fear of water. "Peridot! You're doing it! You're swimming!" I heard Steven call. "That's right! I am! It's so freeing!" I yelled. As I kept swimming, I saw something sparkle. "That must be the other part!" I said. I went underwater, and begin swimming towards the sparkling figure. But, as I reached down, I saw it wasn't a part of my limb enhancers; it was a gemstone. _Huh?_ I thought to myself. I swam closer, and I realized that this wasn't just some random gemstone…this was an actual _Gem._ Suddenly, I saw two pairs of eyes open up. They looked at me. There were green markings across the Gem's face. Its Gem was located in place of where the nose would be. I was caught in a trance, looking at this mysterious Gem. There was something so…familiar…about this Gem. I don't believe I had crossed paths with it back on Homeworld. Suddenly, the Gem began to spasm. It began to scream, and it started to flail its arm; The Gem had three pairs of arms, actually. One of those pairs substituted where the feet would've gone. Suddenly, it began to flail towards my direction. I began to swim away. I could feel it getting closer and closer. I felt its finger touch my leg, but I kicked it out of its reach. I swam to the surface, and I ran over to Pearl and Steven. "Oh my gosh, Peridot!" Steven said. "What is it?" He asked. Between gasps, I had described what I had seen. Pearl and Steven looked at each other, with a nervous expression on their faces. "We need to get Garnet. Peridot, stay here!" Pearl ordered me. I looked out at the lake. I could see the Gem struggling beneath the lake. Suddenly, I saw the rest of the Gems running over to us. "But how did she end up _here?_ I thought that Lapis Lazuli dragged them down to the bottom of the _ocean_ , not a lake!" I heard Pearl say. "Than this must be part of the ocean! Gems…you need to attack!" Garnet ordered. They all dove into the ocean. I was still trying to process what they were talking about. Why were they talking about my informant? Were there _other_ Gems of her type that somehow made it to Earth?

But, suddenly, it hit me.

The ship we had come on. The time when I wasn't a trader. My informant. My escort. I had completely forgotten about them due to the fact that I had been so caught up in trying to escape the Cluster. And that Gem? That was no ordinary Gem.

That was their fusion.


	3. Chapter 3

I started to panic, as I saw the enormous fusion flailing all over the place. It even started to talk.

"Get…back…here! You can't be trusted out there!" I heard. The words sounded like they came from Lapis. It sounded like she was struggling to do something. What was she trying to do?

I then saw water begin to rise, and grab at the fusions feet. Or were they hands? I couldn't tell; everything was moving too quickly. I kept on watching as both Jasper and Lapis started fighting through the fusion. Every time Jasper would try to escape from the ocean, Lapis would use her water-manipulation powers to trip up their fusion, and drag them back in. I even saw Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl trying to intervene. But, Jasper and Lapis' fusion would just use one of their sets of arms to swipe them away.

Suddenly, the massive fusion leaped, at what appeared to be 100 feet in the air. To my horror, the way they were falling, they would fall on _me_ , crushing me. I looked up, paralyzed with fear. I raised my arms up in defense, and began screaming. This was it, I was going to die. I thought that the Cluster was going to eliminate me first. But, no. It was going to be the combination of two Gems who I was once affiliated with, and had lost track of them after being defeated by my enemies-turned-teammates. I was in praising position, with my eyes closed. As I was accepting my inevitable death, I started flying. I opened my eyes, confused. While I was in the air, I realized I felt as though I had the wind knocked out of me. I also realized that it was Garnet who had punched me to safety. After making this realization, I had landed onto the floor.

"Steven! Peridot! Move away!" I heard Garnet scream. I obeyed that order, without question. I watched as Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl tried to defeat the mighty fusion. However, they weren't large enough to take down such a massive creature.

"Ughh….team, get over here!" I heard Garnet say. I watched on as Amethyst and Pearl ran over to Garnet. They then ran in the opposite direction. I had soon lost track of where they were going. Curious, I had run over to try and find them. To my amusement, I found Pearl and Amethyst dancing. I was about to start yelling at them for engaging in wasteful human activities during such a critical time, but then I saw that they were trying to fuse. They were successful. Then, Garnet started to dance. I watched in admiration. Although I don't see the point in dancing, I think Garnet is especially gifted in it. Her dancing is always so rhythmic and smooth. Although I would never admit it, I aspire to be able to dance like her one day.

The other fusion, Opal, started to dance. At first, her movements were erratic and quick. Then, they were elegant and graceful. She then embraced Garnet. A light shone down. Suddenly, I saw the light turn into a silhouette, which had grown to a massive sight. "Aah!" I screamed. I ran away, not wanting to know what they could possibly be fusing in to. I ran into the shed, and covered my ears. I didn't want there to be any more fighting. I just wanted to see what a peaceful life was like.

For so many years, whenever I went on a mission, Gems were always trying to fight. Whether it was to gather information on other planets, and even when trying to build revolutionary technology, the members of the Diamond Authority could never agree on anything. They just wanted power. They would do anything to attain that power. But, they all had different ways of achieving this goal. This led to a lot of arguing amongst the Diamonds. I was beginning to see how flawed and corrupt their system of government was. "Maybe they're not as perfect, after all," I thought to myself.

Suddenly, there was a bang. I ran out of the barn to see what was happening. I saw Garnet and Opal had defused. However, I had lost sight of Jasper and Lapis' fusion. I saw Garnet walk over. She held up her left hand to me. Her hand held two gemstones. "Remember them?" she asked. I looked the gems, in awe. I reached over for Lapis' gem. "Could I hold onto this one? You know…for safekeeping." Garnet looked at me, and started to chuckle. "Yeah, alright, but be careful. Once she reforms, where gonna need to watch her." She gave me the gemstone. "What are you going to do with the other one?" I asked. She bubbled Jasper's gem, and sent it off to the Temple. "Now _she's_ someone we can't afford to reform." She then walked away from me.


	4. Chapter 4

After the Gems had defeated the monstrous fusion (whose name I later found out was Malachite) we packed up all of our belongings, and headed back to Beach City. Pearl and Amethyst sat up front, with Pearl driving. Amethyst was trying to get Pearl to go to a restaurant with her, to try and show Pearl how "great eating was!" Pearl countered all of Amethyst's attempts by suggesting that if they were to go to someplace exciting, they should go to a museum, because a museum is "much more educational, and we can learn more about human culture!"

While they discussed their future plans, Garnet, Steven and I sat in the back seat. Steven, who was sitting in between me and Garnet, had fallen asleep onto Garnet's lap. Garnet didn't seem to notice. I was just looking out at the purple-blue sky. There were so many stars in the sky. I could see moon beginning to show itself.

I looked down into my hands, where Lapis' gem remained. Lapis Lazuli still hadn't reformed. I looked closer at her Gem, just to make sure there were no cracks. I began thinking back to our very first encounters.

I remember when Yellow Diamond had reported that a member of Blue Diamond's court had unexpectedly returned back on Homeworld, after over 4,000 years of being reported as "Missing/Deceased." At this point, I had already reported of my findings of existing Gems on Earth. Both Blue and Yellow Diamond had assumed that, with _my_ knowledge of the Gems on Earth, and Lapis Lazuli's experiences with the environment of the Earth that we would be able to track down the location of these possibly threatening Gems, who could also interfere with the Cluster. We were also assigned to check in on the condition of the Cluster, which was our main focus. Blue Diamond also intended on taking the Gems, and punishing them for their partaking in the Rebellion.

I had been assigned for two Gems to assist me on my travels to Earth: Lapis Lazuli, my informant, and one of Yellow Diamond's soldiers, a Jasper, who would be my escort. They gave us a highly prestigious Gem Warship to arrive on Earth in. I was honored; they barely ever gave low-class Gems, such as myself, the opportunity to even go _inside_ such a fine piece of architecture. If that wasn't good enough, I had also been instructed with _piloting_ the ship into Earth. How marvelous!

It had taken only a few short hours to reach Earth. Jasper had spent those hours by making sure that none of the prison cells were defective. I spent most of my time focusing on the world that had been lain out before me. I began thinking of what my comrades back on Homeworld would say to me, after I returned from such an exciting mission.

After we arrived on Earth, learned of Lapis' affiliation with the Crystal Gems, and imprisoned all of the Gems at fault, we went back onto the ship. Before we actually set out to go back to our Planet, Jasper began to review what we had just seen. She gave me the order to go and interrogate Lapis, who we had also imprisoned.

I saw her, lying in her cell. She looked very fearful, as well as distressed. I almost took pity on her. Those feelings of pity had vanished after I remembered that I had a job I needed to get done.

"Listen. We all know that you have made contact with these…traitors. This must mean that you have some information about them. I think it'd be best if you shared all of your withheld information with us," I told her. She looked at me, and then she turned her body away from mine. I sighed in annoyance. "Listen, _Lazuli_ , I think it would be the easiest for all of us if you answered without resistance. You do realize that your entire existence is on the line, right? And I don't want to get into any type of trouble because of your carelessness!" I told her. She just sat there, not moving. I decided that I couldn't handle her rebelliousness anymore. "Fine. If you're not going to talk, it may as well be because you were trapped inside of your gemstone!" I said. I took out my Gem De-Stabilizer, dropped the field to the cell she was in, and almost tased her. I was just about to touch her when she began to talk.

"You know, you could've given me some type of break before trapping me into yet _another_ prison," she said. "I don't want to hear it!" I said. "Just give me the information that I need to know!" I said. Lapis looked at me, disgusted. She still kept on talking. "Rose Quartz…she just took her sword, and stabbed me with it. I retreated to my gemstone. When I reformed, I was horrified. I was in a small room, and all of the walls were grey. There was one window. I walked up to it, and when I tried to get out, I realized that I couldn't. There was no way to open it. I then saw Rose's Pearl walk over. She looked like a giant. I couldn't help but wonder if she had used her shape-shifting abilities to make herself look that huge. I started to scream for her to help me. She walked over to me, and picked me up. Well, she picked up the room I was in. She started making weird faces. She held my room away from her face, and brought it back closer to it. She started fluffing her hair, and then she began to compliment herself. She began saying things, like, 'It's been 1000 years, and your hair still looks good.' I remember her calling that fusion over to look at what she was holding. They started marveling over it. The fusion seemed like a mixture of both confused, yet delighted. I kept screaming at them to let me out. But they just wouldn't do it!" Lapis suddenly stopped. "And then Rose came over…I remember her telling her Pearl how nice it was that they found a mirror and that they could keep it as a 'souvenir.' Her Pearl and the fusion walked away. But, I saw Rose studying me. I saw her studying the mirror. I was screaming all the while. She looked at it from every angle. When she turned the mirror over, she gasped. I knew she had seen my gemstone…I know that she recognized it. And you know what she did? Nothing. She just kept me in there. In that moment, I had a deep hatred of those dirty rebels. I swore that if I ever found my way out of there, I would destroy them. But, I couldn't bring myself to do it. Especially since the one who freed me was so eager to let me free. And especially after he healed my cracked gem. I just couldn't do it," she said. I looked at her. "Thank you for your report," I said, and then I went to the control bridge.

That was the last time I talked to Lapis. In fact, it was the _only_ time I talked to her. I looked at her gem, and I immediately wished I had talked a little longer with her. But I couldn't, because I was getting too caught up in my work. I looked out the window, which showed a darkening sky. I then looked down at her gemstone. I began to shed a few tears. A few tears then became what seemed like an endless river flowing through both of my eyes. But I was quiet about it. No one noticed my tears. Or so I thought. I felt a hand begin to pet my head. I turned and saw that the hand belonged to Garnet. "You're gonna be okay," she said to me.


End file.
